1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to techniques for printing digital images and, more particularly, to techniques for printing remote images using a mobile device and a printer.
2. Related Art
There is an increasing demand for mobile computing devices and for devices with wireless communication capabilities. For example, both cellular telephones and mobile computing devices such as personal digital assistants (PDAs) are becoming increasingly widespread. Furthermore, devices that incorporate both the features of cell phones and of computing devices are becoming increasingly common. For example, cellular telephones are increasingly being equipped with the ability to send and receive email over the Internet and to browse the World Wide Web (“the Web”).
Another current trend in the computing industry is the increasing popularity of digital photography, spurred in large part by the advent of low-cost, high-quality digital cameras. An increasing number of web sites allow users to upload digital photographs and other digital images to the Web, where such images may subsequently be viewed, shared, edited, and printed on conventional printers using computers connected to the Web using conventional Internet connections.
As mentioned above, some cell phones—referred to herein as “Internet-enabled cell phones”—are capable of communicating over the Internet. When a user makes a conventional voice telephone call using such a cell phone, the cell phone operates in a first mode (referred to herein as “voice mode”), in which the cell phone places the call over a (typically analog) wireless network designated for voice telephone calls. This network is referred to herein as a “voice network,” although such a network may also be capable of carrying data communications. When in voice mode, the display of the cell phone typically displays information such as the telephone number being called, the current duration of the call, and the current strength of the wireless signal.
To connect to the Internet using an Internet-enabled cell phone, the user typically issues a special command to the cell phone (such as by pressing a designated button or selecting a designated menu choice), in response to which the cell phone typically connects to the Internet over a wireless digital network that is designated for data communications. This network is referred to herein as a “data network,” and is typically not the same network as the voice network used to place voice calls. While connected to the Internet in this manner, the cell phone typically operates in a second mode, referred to herein as “Internet mode”. While the cell phone is in Internet mode, the user may engage in activities such as sending/receiving email and browsing the World Wide Web. The cell phone is typically equipped with special software, such as an email client and web browser (also referred to as a “microbrowser”), for enabling the user to engage in these activities. When in Internet mode, the display of the cell phone typically displays the text of the email currently being sent/received or the contents of the web page currently being viewed. The user uses keys on the cell phone keypad to perform Internet-related functions such as entering text into an email message and navigating through web sites.
Some cellular telephones can also operate in a third mode—referred to herein as “modem mode”—in which they perform functions similar to those of a conventional modem. To operate the cell phone in modem mode, the user typically connects a conventional desktop or laptop computer to a data port on the cellular telephone using a data cable. Using communications software installed on the computer, the user instructs the computer to connect to the Internet. In response, the computer instructs the cell phone to make a call to an Internet Service Provider (ISP) using instructions similar to those used to control a conventional modem. In response to these instructions, the cell phone enters modem mode and calls the desired telephone number over the same voice network that is used to make voice telephone calls. Once an Internet connection is established, the computer may communicate over the voice network through the cell phone as if the cell phone were a conventional modem. While in modem mode, the display of the cell phone is typically blank, since the cell phone is being used as a passive conduit of information which is not in a format suitable for display by the cell phone.
There is currently no standard defining the output of a cell phone's data port while the cell phone is operating in the Internet mode. For example, while the cell phone is operating in Internet mode, the cell phone's data port may not transmit any data, or may not transmit data in a format that can be understood by other devices.
An Internet-enabled cell phone may typically operate in only one of the three modes described above (voice mode, Internet mode, and modem mode) at a time. For example, it is typically not possible for an Internet-enabled cell phone to be connected to the Internet in Internet mode at the same time as the user is using the cell phone to make a voice call in voice mode. Similarly, it is typically not possible for an Internet-enabled cell phone to operate in both Internet mode and modem mode at the same time.
When a user with an Internet-enabled cell phone desires to print a digital image stored on a web site, the user typically must use a conventional desktop or laptop computer to connect to the Internet using the cell phone in modem mode. Once connected, the user uses web browser software on the computer to browse to the web site on which the digital image is stored, downloads the image from the web site, and prints the image using a conventional printer connected to the computer by issuing a “print” command to the web browser or other software executing on the computer. As described above, the display of the cell phone is typically blank during this sequence of events.
Conventional cell phones present the following problem for users who desire to print digital images stored on a web site. Consider a user who has used a cell phone in Internet mode to connect to the Internet. The user has used the cell phone's web browser to identify a digital image on a web site. Using conventional Internet-enabled cell phones, it is typically not possible for the user to print the digital image without first terminating the cell phone's connection to the Internet. The reason for this is that, while connected to the Internet in Internet mode, the cell phone does not support communication with a printer, either directly or through a host computer. Therefore, it is not possible for the cell phone to transmit the desired image to a computer or directly to a printer for printing. As a result, to print an image identified on a web site while browsing the web using a cell phone, the user must typically disconnect the cell phone from the Internet and print the image by connecting to the Internet using the cell phone in modem mode, as described above.
More generally, it is typically not possible for a cell phone to print an image, regardless of the network over which the image is received, directly to a printer. Rather, it is typically necessary to connect the cell phone to a computer that is connected to a printer, and to use the computer to download the image with the cell phone in modem mode and then print the image using the printer.
The need to connect the cell phone to a non-mobile computing device such as a conventional desktop computer in order to print images limits the ability of the user to take fall advantage of the mobility otherwise provided by the cell phone. What is needed, therefore, are improved techniques for downloading and printing digital images using a mobile computing device.